The Balcony
by jazzrbca
Summary: Set after Eleanor's 6 months abroad with Sebastian, she's back at the palace and a confrontation with Jasper ensues. Sorry, this is my first fanfic and I suck at summaries (btw. English isn't my first language so I'm sorry for any mistakes. Hope you all enjoy it!) - reviews are always appreciated!


Today was the day she'd return. Those six months were amazing, she never thought escaping the walls she was trapped in, both literally and figuratively, would be so perfect. She didn't see everyone for six months, not even Liam. She did talk to him though, she called him almost every day. She talked to Robbie too, the new King of England. They are both on not so good terms. Liam is trying to dig dirt on Robert, with Cyrus and Jasper. The infamous detective trio. She didn't talk to Jasper. She didn't hear anything from him, she didn't muster up the courage to ask Liam about him. She was scared. She didn't know what he'd have in store for her. She knew Jasper and Liam were pretty close, so she didn't ask, she didn't want to know about Jasper's feelings, she couldn't handle it.

She'll be coming back, he thought to himself. He couldn't bear seeing her today. Although six months passed, he still felt pain, heartbreak, love. In the past six months he did what he always does when he's heartbroken, he threw himself into work. He distracts himself, so he doesn't feel this pain, this suffering. He knew she must've moved on with Sebastian, she did say that she wanted easy, that she wanted it with Sebastian. He didn't expect her to run into his arms, to drop everything just for him, he wasn't worth it. To clear his mind, he decided to take the week off and he went to Liam to tell him. He knocked on his door, when he heard Liam saying he can come in, he opened the door and said: "Liam I need to take this week off, something came up at home." That was a straight up lie and Liam seems to get it. He gave him a look and said: "Who are we kidding here Jasper … I'm your friend, you can tell me." Liam looked at Jasper, the heartbreak visible on his face. "I can't see her, not now. I need to clear my head, I need this week to recollect myself, I don't even know if I can come back and work again, seeing her, with someone else, not by my side.", he answered, his voice low, filled with sadness, emptiness. Liam was speechless. He never got to see Jasper so emotional, so heartbroken. His sister did leave a number on him. "Take as much time off as you need. I'd hate it if you quit though. You are one of the few good people in this hellhole." Jasper gave Liam a small smile "I don't think your sister will agree … I'll better get going. If you need anything, you know where to reach me.", he then gestured at his phone. Liam gave him a hug and Jasper left Liam's room. While he was walking out of the palace he thought that this was his last time talking that walk if he quit. If he left. He needed to sort things out. He needed to see if he could make it without her, but seeing her every day.

The car drove towards the gates, and she looked out of the window, seeing everyone waiting for her. Robert, her mum, Liam, even Cyrus. Everyone … she had this hope that Jasper would be there, standing there. Welcoming her. She let out a breath, she didn't know she was holding before exiting the car. She was happy to see them. She really was. "Hello little sis." She heard Robert say, pure happiness in his voice. "It's nice to be back, your Majesty." He just laughed and embraced her in a tight hug. So did Liam: "I'm glad your back, this place wasn't the same." She smiled at him. Her mother didn't say anything, tears in her eyes, she knew that her mother was overwhelmed to see her again. So she didn't say anything as well and gave her a tight hug. "You've outdone yourself. I'm impressed by your work." She heard Cyrus say. She was quite surprised that he'd stand out here today. Last time she saw him, he was fighting for the crown. "Thank you uncle.", he gave him a small smile. "Let's go in, shall we, it's very cold." She heard Robert say. He was right, it was a rather cold day. The clouds were covering the sun, signaling that it'll rain. She walked in with the rest of her family. "So tell me, what did I miss?" They all laughed: "Nothing much, the usual.", Robert answered.

When they arrived at the living room, she saw Sara Alice: "Princess!" Sara Alice ran towards Eleanor, Eleanor hugged her tightly, missing the little rascal. "I missed you Sara Alice from the Palace." "I missed you too, this place isn't the same without you." Eleanor just hugged even tighter. She really missed Sara Alice. She never thought she'd like a child so much, considering she hated children. When she let go of Sara Alice, she felt the exhaustion in her body. She needed to sleep, to rest. "I wish I could stay and chat, but I need some sleep. This 6 hours flight didn't do me a favor." "Of course honey, get some rest and we'll talk when you're fit." "Liam, can you carry my bags with me." "Darling I could tell one of the maids to-." "It's fine mother, I'll help Len." "If you insist." "Good night, I'll see you tomorrow." She said. Robert and Helena smiled at her.

"So, is there a reason why I'm carrying your bags and not one of the maids?" Liam asked her, while they were walking down the corridor. She hesitated, before saying: "Well when we walked in the living room, I didn't see Jasper, he is supposed to stand guard for Robbie, but he wasn't there … where is he?", she asked, not ready for the answer. "Do you want the official reason, or the unofficial reason?" "Unoffical." "Well, he doesn't know if he can handle working here, with you being back. He isn't over you, I don't think he'll be for a long time. So, he took some time off, a week to be more precise. To sort things out, to decide whether he wants to keep working here, or to leave, for good." Eleanor was speechless, she didn't expect this. She didn't think that this would be his reason. She thought he had some business to deal with, concerning their Robert-investigation. After what felt like an eternity, she said: "Okay, thank you Liam, I'm gonna get some rest, I'll see you tomorrow." "Eleanor. You need to talk to him, he isn't in a good state, emotionally. He really misses you and he is so, so in love with you. I know he fucked up on multiple occasions, but please consider talking to him." "I will Liam.", she said before walking into her room. She looked at the walls and they practically screamed Jasper. She thought about him. She did a lot. Even during the six months. She realized that Jasper gave her something no one could give her. Not even full-filing her dreams. Not even another guy like Sebastian. She needed him, but she isn't ready to get her heart broken again. His heart must be breaking in forever, she thought. He told her he loved her before she left. Back then it angered her, it did, but now she needs to hear it again. She is so scared to see him, too scared what will happen, but she needed to take this step and contact him. She took out her phone and she saw that she got a message from Sebastian: I hope you had a safe ride home, text me Len xx. She chose to answer him later, so she started typing a message to Jasper: Where are you? She didn't know what else to say. She checked the message once again before pressing send. She bit her lip anxiously, not sure what to expect out of this message. He didn't answer, she waited 10 minutes. She decided to take a shower, maybe he was busy… Just as she decided to go to the bathroom, she got a text. Open your balcony door. She strode towards the door, pushing the curtains aside, opening it, feeling a rush of adrenaline while doing so. And there he was. Standing there in the moonlight, his 3 days stubble visible, in a leather jacket, ripped black jeans and a dark grey shirt. He looked like a fucking greek god. But she wouldn't admit it. She stepped outside.

He had a cigarette in his mouth. "Didn't know you were a smoker.", she chose to say. He exhaled and said: "I'm full of surprises.", looking at her with his blue eyes. She saw how tired he was, how hurt he was.

She laughed at that. It was true. He was full of surprises, he never seized to amaze her. "Where were you today when I came home?" He didn't answer. It surprised her how blunt she was, how direct she was. He stepped on his cigarette and started walking towards her, until she was leaning against the balcony, him standing in front of her, being insanely close to her. She couldn't escape him, she was trapped. She could smell him, he smelled like cigarettes, cologne. Masculine, manly and so god damn sexy. She couldn't look at him, she wasn't ready yet, instead she looked down. "You want to know where I was? I was at home, thinking how the hell I can survive being around you, knowing you'd want me to go to hell. I was at home, thinking how I can be in the same place as the woman I want to spend my happily ever after with. I was at home thinking that I fucked this up, that the only reason I can't be with you, is because I am too stupid to trust anyone. I was at home thinking about the times we used to have, you and me, the good times, the crazy times, the bad times. That's where I was, at home, wishing I could be with you, knowing that I've blown my shot, for good." He stared directly at her, piercing her with his blue eyes. A stern look on his face. The hurt, the anger, the frustration showing through his voice. She didn't know what to say. She didn't think he would be yearning to be with her, after all this time. She didn't think that he'd open up to her so easily, she didn't think he still wanted that happily ever after, Sara Alice always talked about. When she didn't say anything, he decided to leave, taking it as a clue that she isn't going to forgive him. He thought that resigning was his best option right now, to leave everything behind. He started turning around, walking towards her balcony door, tears in his eyes, damn it, he managed to fuck this up even more. But before he knew it, he felt her hand grabbing his arm, pushing him towards her. Tears were streaming down her face. "You broke my heart Jasper, several times. But I can't envision my happily ever after with someone else. I can't, because I guess after all these secrets and lies, my happily ever after is here, with you…" He couldn't believe what she was saying. Does this mean she is ready to give this a final shot? "Eleanor, what are you trying to say?" She closed her eyes before saying: "What I'm trying to say is… I love you so fucking much Jasper and after this hellhole we've been through I still want my happily ever after with you. I still want you." He couldn't breathe, he didn't know what to do. He needed to kiss her, hold her, never let her go. So, he cupped her face with his hands and kissed her, and he tasted the love, the pain, the heartache. He deepened the kiss, pushing his tongue past her lips and she loved every second of it. He tasted like cigarettes, scotch and Jasper and she decided that she would never get tired of this taste, never tired of him. After a while of passionate, heated kissing, he let go and said: "I love you so much Eleanor, I can't even tell you…I am the luckiest man on this fucking planet." She looked at him, lust and love clouding her vision. "If you can't express how much you love me, how about you show me in there." He grinned at her, smugly, his grin was panty-dropping, it always has been. "My pleasure, your Highness."


End file.
